Ukraine defeats Spain and reaches the playoffs of the European Volleyball Championship

The Ukrainian men's national team managed to qualify for the playoffs of the European Championship, which takes place from August 28 to September 16 in Italy, Bulgaria, Northern Macedonia and Israel. Ugis Krastins's wards defeated Spain 3-0 (25:21, 25:21, 25:19) at the Palace of Sports in Varna and got the 4th final place.

Ukrainians started the match unsuccessfully, allowing the opponent to make a 5:2 spurt. After that, our volleyball players responded with a confident game, equalizing the score. It was an even battle up to 11-11, but the Ukrainian team's advantage grew with each next point.

In the remaining two games, our compatriots worked with extreme concentration from the first minutes, not giving their opponents a single opportunity for revenge.

Ukraine had an unsuccessful start at the volleyball Euro-2023, losing the first three meetings. Only in the match against Finland Krastins's wards got their first victory, but it did not excite the players. Ukraine's captain Oleh Plotnytskyi said that "they were playing like shit".

Ukraine needed to win 3-0 or 3-1 in their game against Spain to qualify for the playoffs.

The Ukrainians moved up to third place after Slovenia's win over Bulgaria in the final game of the tourney.

Ukraine has made it to the Euro playoffs for the third time in its history. At the two previous European Championships, the Ukrainians finished in the quarterfinals (2019) and in the 1/8 finals (2021).

According to the regulations, Group B teams will take on representatives from Group D in the playoffs. Ukraine will play against the 2nd team, which is Portugal. 1/8 finals will start on Friday, September 8.

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